Clasp.



mfssmss. PATENTED 001?. 2, 1906. W SGHWBITZER CLASP.

APPLICATION FILED OCT 14 1905 [hwan/ah: //zzzwms c&m v

U N ITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CLASP- Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Oct. 2, 1906.

Application filed October 14,1905. Serial No. 282.836.

To aZl whom] it may concern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM SOHWEITZER, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Chicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Clasps, of which the following is a specification, and which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, forming a part thereof.

The invention relates to a clasp adapted to be attached to the walls of a chest or rack for securing articles in place, being such a device as may, for example, be attached to the walls or fly-leaves of a physicians medicine-case for holding bottles.

The object of the invention is' to provide a clasp which may be economically constructed from a single piece of metal and which will provide means for securing a plurality of articles in closely-adjacent positions.

The invention consists in a device of novel construction to be hereinafter described and claimed and which is illustrated in the ac companying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a plan view of a device involving the invention and illustrating it as being applied to the interior of a medicine-case.

Fig. 2 is a sectional view on the line 2 2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a plan view illustrating a modification in the construction. Fig. 5 is a front elevation of the form of device shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 6 is a sectional detail on the line 6 6 of Fig. 4; and Fig. 7 is a detail of that form of device illustrated in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, drawn in perspective.

In carrying out the invention as shown in the drawings a strip 10 of resilient metal, preferably, though not necessarily, in the form of a metal ribbon, as a strip of sheetbrass, is folded upon itself at a plurality of points 11 to form a series of open loops 12 for receiving the articles to be attached. For securing an article within each of these loops each of the folds 11 is divided into two parts by means of a cleft extending downwardly from the apexes of the crests of the fold, as indicated at 13, Fig. 3. The two parts of the fold constitute a pair of fingers 14 15, which are curved in opposite directions to form an angle with each other, and thereby provide a flange 16 extending over the body of each of the adjacent loops 12 12. Each of the fingers 14 15 is preferably also bent in the reverse direction-to form an inclined shoulder 17, against which when an article is to be inserted it may be pressed to open the loop.

The strip of metal 10 may be of any desired length and a clasp, consisting of as many adjacent loops 12 12 as will be re uired formed therefrom. The clasp forme may now be secured to the device to which the articles are to be attached-as, for example, the medicine-case Aby means of rivets 18, one or more rivets being preferably applied at the base of each of the loops 12. The ends of the strip 10 may be attached in any manner, but most conveniently by being folded back upon the last loop, as shown at 19, far enough to be caught by the rivet 18, which passes through that loop.

When the articles to be secured are of a fragile nature, as the bottles X, the base of the loops will be countersunk in the floor of the medicine-case, preferably by forming therein a longitudinal groove a, equal in width to the strip of metal 10 for receiving the clasp. The bottles, then, when force into the loops will be seated against the floor of the medicine-case, which will usually be of soft material, as wood, and be faced with leather 1), so that there will be no danger of breakage.

If desired, the device may be so constructed as to support the articles at some distance from the frame to which it is attached. This form of construction is illustrated in Figs. 4, 5, and 6 and may be conveniently applied to the face of a desk B and used for supporting rubber stamps. As shown, loops 20 are formed, as previously described, the base of each loop, however, being formed with a U- shaped extension 21, which serves for supporting the loop at some distance from the face of the desk. The clasp so formed is secured to the device to which it will be applied by means of rivets 22, inserted at the base of the extension 21. When constructed in this way, the folds 11 11 are preferably divided by a deep cut 23 to form elastic flanges 24 25 for the adjacent loops, so that the article to be secured, as a rubber stamp Y, may be easily inserted or removed.

It will be observed that the invention provides a clasp by means of which a number of articles may be secured side by side with but little intervening space and in such a way that they may be removed or inserted without endvvise movement. The dimensions of the case or frame to which the clasp is to be applied need not, therefore, be materially greater than the combined dimensions of the articles to be received.

The device is of extremely simple and efficient construction and may be formed in a single operation by automatic machinery.

I claim as my invention 1. A clasp for bottles or like articles comprising a metal ribbon bent to serpentine form, and cleft longitudinally at the apexes of the crests of its folds, the parts of such cleft portions being spread apart longitudinally as to the ribbon.

2. As an article of manufacture, a clasp having a plurality of loops and formed of a single piece of metal, the dividing-wall between adjacent loops comprising a two-part fold in the metal forming the body of the loops and the two parts of the fold forming an angle With each other.

WILLIAM SCHWEITZER.

Witnesses:

CHARLES B. GILLsoN, E. M; KLATOHER. 

